Schneider, NM, Deighan, JI, Stewart, AIF et al. (14 more authors) (2015) MAVEN IUVS observations of the aftermath of the Comet Siding Spring meteor shower on Mars. Geophysical Research Letters, 42 (12). pp. 4755-4761. ISSN 0094-8276
Abstract
We report the detection of intense emission from magnesium and iron in Mars' atmosphere caused by a meteor shower following Comet Siding Spring's close encounter with Mars. The observations were made with the Imaging Ultraviolet Spectrograph, a remote sensing instrument on the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN spacecraft orbiting Mars. Ionized magnesium caused the brightest emission from the planet's atmosphere for many hours, resulting from resonant scattering of solar ultraviolet light. Modeling suggests a substantial fluence of low-density dust particles 1-100μm in size, with the large amount and small size contrary to predictions. The event created a temporary planet-wide ionospheric layer below Mars' main dayside ionosphere. The dramatic meteor shower response at Mars is starkly different from the case at Earth, where a steady state metal layer is always observable but perturbations caused by even the strongest meteor showers are challenging to detect.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2015, American Geophysical Union. Reproduced in accordance with the publisher's self-archiving policy. |
Keywords: | meteor shower; Comet Siding Spring; Mars; meteor ablation; ionosphere; MAVEN |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Leeds |
Academic Units: | The University of Leeds > Faculty of Engineering & Physical Sciences (Leeds) > School of Chemistry (Leeds) > Physical Chemistry (Leeds) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Publications |
Date Deposited: | 24 Aug 2015 09:15 |
Last Modified: | 10 Mar 2016 22:57 |
Published Version: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/2015GL063863 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | American Geophysical Union |
Identification Number: | 10.1002/2015GL063863 |
Related URLs: | |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:89124 |